Jose

Jose, a hairstylist, struggled to find a practitioner to make prostheses that fit right for his three missing fingers. The fingers would be too big, too loose, too tight, or the color would be completely different from that of his skin. Since his hands are very close to his customers’ faces, both their appearance and function matter to his livelihood. He has been a customer of Aesthetic Prosthetics now for years, and he says that it makes it possible for him to continue to work in his trade.
“Since they started working with me, I always tell them how I feel and what should be different. I’m a hairstylist and I use my hands every day.” Jose knew that he could more easily hold a pair of shears if his prosthetic fingers were slightly bent and a little smaller and thinner. Aesthetic Prosthetics staff listened to his needs.
Jose knows a lot of people who are handicapped, and wishes he knew how to approach them to tell them how much a good prosthesis could improve their lives. “Some of those people do not know that they have a choice to have something done to look better. If people notice that you are handicapped they keep staring at you.” Jose says they do not stare at him any more–since no one can tell that three of his fingers are silicone! “People do not really know about all these choices that they have,” he muses.
To Aesthetic Prosthetics, Jose says: “You know, you guys are my heroes. You saved my life.” Jose doesn’t feel that everyone would be comfortable having him work on his or her hair otherwise. “My hand is not very good-looking without the prosthetics. People would be afraid of me.” Jose’s hand looks so natural that customers rarely notice that he is an amputee.